


Mirror Reversed, Part 1

by queenofroses12



Series: Aboard The Starship Enterprise [9]
Category: Star Trek, Star Trek: The Original Series
Genre: Alternate Universe - Evil, Alternative Perspective, Episode Related, Episode: s02e10 Mirror Mirror, Gen, Gen or Pre-Slash, Minor Spock/Nyota Uhura, Mirror Universe, POV James T. Kirk, Trapped, What-If
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-12-31
Updated: 2020-12-31
Packaged: 2021-03-11 02:01:30
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,630
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/28457226
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/queenofroses12/pseuds/queenofroses12
Summary: The episode never mentions just how the Mirror verse Kirk and team ended up so promptly in the brig. My idea of how things went down on USS Enterprise during Mirror Mirror.
Relationships: James T. Kirk & Spock
Series: Aboard The Starship Enterprise [9]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1980352
Comments: 5
Kudos: 11





	Mirror Reversed, Part 1

James Tiberius Kirk is the best captain the Empire has, and he is fully aware how much of a target it paints on his back. He’s the top dog, and those who are not, knows there’s only one way to be it. The Halkan business is just the sort of thing that may make or break his career, meaning his life.

He has made plenty of enemies in his time, and some have proved more politically savvy, or perhaps just better connected, and have placed themselves in positions that could bring the ruthlessly efficient weapons of the Empire on his head- if he made a single misstep. Which, of course, he does not intend to do.

He knows that he should not feel glad that the fools down on this planet has chosen suicide over annexation – as his first officer pointed out before the team transported down, the Halkans, for all their disgusting sentiments, had aspects which could be useful to the Empire.

But still, the thrill that ran through him every time he gave that command, every time he knew that, upon his word, his authority, the life of an entire world was being snuffed out, is taking over. It will not cloud his thinking, in fact it will sharpen it.

He wants to remain a little longer, play with them a little, hold out hope and retract it, question a few..The possibilities are limitless. After all, he has been given free rein on this mission. But right now they can’t afford the time. The ion storm rushing to meet them is intent on hurrying them on their way.

He gives the Halkan council – trying so hard to seem brave, the pathetic bunch of fanatics – one sharp glance, a single obligatory final chance to change their minds. But they remain steady, silent, their eyes fixed on something in the far horizon. Waiting for the death that would, in a matter of moments, roar down upon them from the skies. The wrath of gods.

“Energize” he barks into his communicator, and feels the familiar tingle of transporter beam taking hold. In another universe, another Captain Kirk – Jim, not James, and certainly not James Tiberius – does the same. The ion storm rages in both skies.

……………………………………

As a man who regularly expects and thwarts assassination attempts along with carrying them out himself when necessary, Kirk’s first priority on materializing on the Transporter pad is to check for his weapon.

His eyes narrow, rage and alarm sharpening his mind. Sulu, that bastard…Spock is the next in line, the usual suspect, but he knows the Vulcan too well. A scientist, not a commander, not interested in captaincy. All this goes through his mind in a fraction of a second as he finds himself unarmed and vulnerable.

Spock is there, standing by the transporter console, not in his uniform but some sort of modified version. For a moment, he almost doesn’t recognize him without the beard. Why the hell did he shave it off? This makes him look too soft, too young. Certainly not a good aura for a half breed to project, or a safe one. He does not salute, nor does lieutenant Kyle at the console. Kyle, in fact, gives them a relieved grin.

No guards. None of Spock’s Vulcan entourage. Only some technicians, all looking much too relaxed, none of them saluting. Kirk realizes that he must have misjudged the Vulcan. Looks like he does have ambitions of Captaincy, after all. Because that is all this could mean- an assassination, set up to coincide with the Halkan conquest, so that it would be Spock who returned with the much needed Dilithium crystals.

Maybe that was the reason for the damn transporter flicker. He tried to get rid of them cleanly at first, with a transporter mishap, one that would no doubt be blamed on Kyle. And now that it went wrong for some reason or the other, he has moved on to plan B. Maybe he would still spin it as a transporter accident. The techs around must all be his men.

It would not have been too difficult for him to convince them – after all, with his legitimate halfbrother’s ‘accident’, Spock now commanded all the considerable wealth and influence of the Surak clan. Or maybe he had just convinced them in a less standard, more effective way. He had seen Spock do that, too, but that usually left the victims in a much less lively condition…

”Captain?” 

Kirk is an expert at reading body language, even that of a Vulcan. Not to mention the uncanny intuition that has saved his life more times than even the Tantalus Field has. That intuition tells him that there is no hostile intent here, but actual, though well disguised, concern. Was his first assumption the right one, after all? Had it been Sulu who had arranged the accident, and Spock who, for unfathomable reasons of his own, saved them?

That does not explain the insubordination, the lack of weapons, the strange uniforms that they and all around them wear. That does, however, explains the Security Officer’s absence from greeting the landing party. No doubt the fool is in one of the agony booths.

Kirk takes a quick glance at his companions. All are unarmed, and attired in these unfamiliar uniforms. All look equally baffled, though Uhura is swiftly regaining her self control, swifter than either of the other two men. Scott and the doctor just stares at Spock.

“Captain, are you alright?” Concern, yes, not in the voice, but clear in the eyes. “Lieutenant Kyle, contact sickbay. The landing party-“

Kirk interrupts hastily.

“That would not be necessary, First Officer.” He uses the title, not the Vulcan’s name as he normally does.”We are unharmed. “

Something in his phrasing seems to have bothered Kyle. The fool is staring much too intently at his commanding officers.

“Report” the captain orders.

Spock does not seem convinced by the assurance. Is that part of the game? Make him look weak? Unfit to command? The Vulcan is a dangerous opponent, and had he indeed been interested in captaincy, Kirk has to admit to himself that his own chances would be somewhat…less than satisfactory. Is he to be pitted against Spock now, finally?

None of the others say a word, even move a muscle. They, like him, are trying to make sense of what just happened. Make sense of the changes. He can feel their eyes on him, asking, demanding, direction. In a way, that is reassuring, knowing what he does of Uhura’s ambitions. But now even she looks to him to lead, and lead he must. At least they are not in on whatever Spock is planning.

“Report!” he orders again, sharper.

“There was a mild disruption in the transporter beam, Captain” Spock says calmly, as if nothing is out of ordinary except for a mild beam miss. “ The effect of the ion storm, doubtless. Are you well? Doctor? Lieutenant?” 

“Who was manning the transporter?” Scott growls. “Whichever idiot failed to compensate for that…”

Kyle blanched. But there was as much surprise as well as fear in his expression.

“I am sorry, sir, but it…The ion storm –“

“Ion storm!”

The Chief Engineer’s face was ruddy with rage. Kirk couldn’t blame him. Why the hell hadn’t Spock already flung that fool into the nearest agony booth? Never mind, just another puzzle to solve. Scott, meanwhile, was glaring at the cowering lieutenant.

“Are you telling me that you are so damn incompetent that you don’t know how to compensate for the storm?”

He grabs Kyle by the collar. An agoniser would be the option Kirk would have chosen, but the Engineer likes to use his own hands. Not so effective, perhaps, but apparently more satisfying.

“Engineer Scott!”

Spock has moved forward, interposing himself between the furious scot and the shocked lieutenant. Kirk frowns. It is the privilege of the Chiefs to punish their subordinates, and the transporter operator is one of Scott’s men, not the Vulcan’s. He almost interferes, but Uhura grabs his hand, her words an intense whisper, too low for even Vulcan ears to catch from where Spock is standing.

“Parallel universe.”

Two words, but that is enough to convey the idea, the seemingly preposterous idea, to him. For a moment, Kirk’s mind reels, yelling at him that this is simply not possible, but the pieces all fall into place once you take that basic assumption.

He gives Uhura a small nod, trying to give the impression that he had indeed deduced that and was bidding his time. Won’t do to let the crew see you miss a beat.

Scott has already backed off from the transporter operator. Chief’s privilege or not, you simply don’t touch someone the Vulcan has chosen to take under his wing. Though why in the world he would be interested in Kyle…Usually it is the science department that provides Spock with his protégées. Kyle is engineering, quick of hand and eye, but no scientist. Maybe, if Uhura is correct and this is an alternate universe, it could be that this Spock has different standards.

Anyway, time to get out of here. And get Scott and McCoy out of here, too. Uhura can look after herself. If this Spock is anything like his version, they would do better to put all the distance they could between him and them.

”Watch yourself, Mr. Scott” he commands.

Evidently Scott’s reaction to the lieutenant’s error is completely unexpected, going by the way every one in the room is staring at the ruddy faced Chief engineer. Lack of proper discipline. That is one thing that would work in their favor, considering just how complicated this situation could become. He turns his attention to Spock.

“I guess we are all somewhat shaken. That was a rough beamup.”

Okay, that is better. Most of the techs seem to consider that sufficient explanation, Kyle apologizes profusely again. Spock, however…There is no way to tell what he is thinking. Softer look or not, he is as unreadable as his counterpart.

“Doc, you better give the landing party a thorough checkup.”

McCoy nods, grim faced. How much of the situation does he understand?

“Do the Halkans stand by their decision, Captain?”

“Of course they do. Fools.”

“They are somewhat illogical.”Spock agrees. “However, a very ethical race, and one that is perfectly willing to face the consequences of any choice they make.”

“They will be facing consequences alright” he declares.

Well, that is one thing that he would get to do, in his world or not. Maybe, if he was lucky, he could do it twice over, here and back home. Spock raises a perfectly shaped eyebrow, one habit that apparently remains steady in any universe.

“Consequences, Captain?”

Kirk catches himself, almost too late. If Uhura’s cracked theory is indeed correct, if this is a different universe, even a parallel one, there is no way to be sure what are the normal procedures involved. What is he supposed to do with the Halkans here? Well, when in doubt, go by the book.

“The usual procedure, Mr.Spock” He remarks with a forced casual manner. “You handle it this time. “

There you go, Vulcan. He doesn’t seem satisfied, and follows as the landing party is marched off to sickbay by a baffled-but-playing-along-for-now McCoy.

“Would you prefer that I handle the communications to Fleet command?”

“Actually, yes, I’d rather. I had all the jabbering I can stomach for the day with that bunch of sheep down there.”

Even as he speaks, Kirk’s eyes wander over the corridors they move through. Everything is the same. And everything is different. There are no guards in the corridors. There is an overall air of...He can’t quite put his finger on it…An At-Ease sort of manner?

No one salutes as they walk by, the Captain, the First Officer, the Chief Engineer, CMO and Chief Communications Officer. There are smiles and nods exchanged instead. Uhura returns them with an easy familiarity from the beginning, and so does Kirk the moment he catches on. McCoy and Scott, on the other hand, have either not noticed or have decided not to bother.

Fools. He must administer a chastisement for such negligence. But not right now. He keeps an eye on Spock’s counterpart, and the crew’s reactions to him as well. He doesn’t return the smiles either (Good – this is already crazy enough without adding an emotional Vulcan into the mix.), but that doesn’t seem to be out of the ordinary or offensive. No one flinches away from him either. (Now that is out of the ordinary).

The Vulcan moves as he usually does, with a pantherlike swift and silent stride, but there is a perceptible warmth in his aura. Or maybe it is the absence of that cold, steely glare that he is used to. Never mind. He needs to get this pointy-eared bastard away from them.

“Return to the Bridge, Mr Spock.”

The First Officer obeys, no change in his expression, but it is not exactly the right words-or rather, the right tone- going by the look a passing crewman gave them. Was he too mild or too terse? Pronto, they need to figure out the social layout here.

“Sir” McCoy whispers “What the hell’s going on here? What’s that damn Vulcan upto?”

“He’s got Kyle under his command, for some reason or the other” Scott growls “I willna have it, Sir. First Officer or no, no one poaches me lads.”

“Shut up” Kirk takes care to keep his voice low, but with enough venom in it to tell the idiots what would happen if they refuse to obey.

The sickbay is like the rest of the ship – almost the same, but not quite. Nurse Chapel smiles at them as they enter, and hurries over to them. Smiling. Willingly approaching McCoy. If he had needed anymore proof of Uhura’s theory, this would have done it.

“Doctor?”

Uhura hurriedly steps between the oblivious nurse and the CMO.

“Just a routine checkup, Chapel. The Doc’ll handle it.”

Chapel does not take the chance to escape.

”What happened? We heard there was a problem with the transporter beam.”

“Nothing serious, Nurse” Kirk manages a reasonably accurate imitation of the casual tone of this strange world.

“Glad to know it, captain” She actually gives McCoy a conspiratorial smile and a wink. “Well, at least you got another point to shoot the next time you argue about the transporter, Len.”

For a moment Kirk is convinced that their subterfuge is blown, that McCoy would strangle this ridiculously cheerful version of Chapel, but fortunately the doctor is too shocked to react. Finally they are in the doctor’s private office, the door closed and locked behind them, hopefully private.

He reaches for the scrambler that would prevent the conversation from being picked up by the Security department over the ever open com channel, but of course he doesn’t have it. It was with the other uniform.

“You won’t need it, sir”Uhura says, herself more than a little surprised. “The com channel’s closed. We’re safe in here.”

What the hell of a kind of lax ship does these creatures run?

“Captain”Scotty sounds uncertain for the first time. “These things..the seals and marks on them…It’s marked USS Enterprise.”

“Just how thoroughly did that greenblooded computer switch allegiance?”McCoy demands, spluttering “Who’s he with? What does USS stand for? Some kind of Vulcan secret group?”

“Even Spock can’t change every single piece of marked machinery aboard, plus the uniforms and weaponry, in the time we spent with the Halkans.” He gestured to Uhura. “As the lieutenant was the only one among you who had the brains to work it out, I’ll let her explain”

_She’ll have to, I don’t have a clue._

Uhura smiled as her glance travelled over the men. It was not the bland, sickly-sweet smile she had given in greeting to Chapel, but the normal Uhura smile, the one that said she was both able and willing to take you apart from limb to limb or inch by inch if you gave her one good excuse to do it.

“We are in an alternate universe. One parallel to ours, but apparently having undergone a somewhat radical shift in philosophy.”

McCoy splutters a bit more, but she pays him no attention.

”Scott, you attended the series of lectures on the possibility of an interphase, a window between the universes, so as to speak.”

“Aye, lass. I dinna ken you did, though.”

“Use intelligible language, engineer” Kirk commands. Scott’s brogue is always irritating, and right now he can’t take much more.

“I didn’t know you did” Scott repeats, scowling.

“You have to get a bit creative to seduce a Vulcan” Uhura remarks casually.

“Whatever” Kirk doesn’t want to hear the details of whatever Uhura has got going with Spock, not the least because of the intense surge of jealousy he has to repress every time he thinks of her with his…his First Officer.

“Anyway, it seems that the ion storm interfered enough with the transporter lock to make us materialize…Elsewhere. “

“That would explain why we materialized twice.”

And the momentary dizziness, not that he was going to admit to that. There was a moment of pause, while McCoy cursed transporters, the one who invented transporters, and every generation of his ancestors and the rest of the landing party let the realization of their predicament sink in.

Then Kirk turned to the nearest computer console, summoning up all the info it had on their counterparts, and this world in general. They needed to know what they were to act like. What he found out nearly made him smash the console to pieces in a rage.

“Federation! Pacifist Vulcans! Non Interference clause! Gods in Heaven, why the…”

“What sort of a disgusting milksop world is this?”

“The Klingon empire still exists? And the Vulcans never wiped out the Romulans?”

”What was the divergence point?”

“Surak, I think. This version preached…pacifism” he pronounced the word as if it were a curse. “And the Nazis were defeated in the Terran World War II.”

”So the Thousand-Year-Reich…” “Never happened. The Empire was never founded.”

………………………………

It takes time, but they work things out, more or less. Scott maybe a little lacking in imagination when it comes to non-mechanical matters, but once Uhura had made the suggestion of alternate universes, the engineer set his genuinely magnificent brain to work on figuring out how to get them out of this mad world.

“I’ll have to have access to the transporters. Unsupervised access.”

Kirk nods. In his universe, such an attempt would be problematic, to say the least. No one, not even the captain, is unsupervised. Any attempt to remain so for the amount of time Scott requires, would be suicidal. But here, he rightly assumes, such a demand from the Chief Engineer, while it may be remarked upon, would certainly be permitted.

For a moment Scotty looks indecisive, as if debating whether he can ask one of them to assist him, then thinks better of it. Kirk smirks. This is Scott’s job. Besides, of them all, it’s only Kirk and Uhura who have minored in Engineering.

Scott won’t be fool enough to ask the captain to work under his supervision, and he would know there’s no chance Kirk will let Uhura be alone with any of the other men here – an assassination attempt here, with none of his guards by, could well prove….troublesome. Keep the girl where he can see her.

“Doctor. Stay here. Act your counterpart’s role the best you can, stay away from Chapel. We can’t have any alarm given. Lieutenant, you’re with me.”

He has certain plans. Scotty will take a couple of hours to get the transporters re programmed. That leaves him time. There are several things he wishes to do – that bitch Noel, for once. Oh, to get at Dr Ice Queen in a universe where he doesn’t have to worry about her sugar daddy Admiral!

But that will have to wait. First, more practical matters. He has reviewed the recent missions, and found certain…opportunities, so to speak.

The Time Planet, for one. If he could get the co-ordinates…Always assuming, of course, it would be the same in this universe… What had changed? After all, the other missions had all corresponded to similar incidents in their world…

Of course, if McCoy had been fool enough to go crazy and beam down to a dead world, it’d have been good riddance. He certainly had no use for a medical officer clumsy enough to inject himself by mistake. The Time planet. He grinned.

In this Universe it was guarded by a joint force of Federation, Romulans and Klingons. Evidently, the potential for disaster had alarmed the three warring groups enough to call a temporary truce. But in his universe it was still undiscovered. There for the taking. If he could gain control of it, gain control of time…

Screw the Empire. Or rather, screw the emperor. It would be time for a new galactic ruler…

Get the co-ordinates. He couldn’t access it from the sickbay computers, not without giving the captain’s code, no doubt different here. But his personal computer would certainly grant access. oh, yes.

“Am I to accompany you to your room, Captain?” Uhura arches an eyebrow questioningly.

“You can hardly go to Spock’s rooms here.” Kirk comments curtly.

She smiles. The bitch knows perfectly well how he feels about her and Spock’s relationship. The doors slide open at his approach. Lax security, again. It is probably programmed to respond to his – this version’s – body signature, but still, lax security. Their loss, my gain.

“Keep watch.”


End file.
